Replaced Rancho XL9000 with Fox-- In 10 minutes I understand why Fox is on top.
03-14-2015, 07:21 PM
#1
JK Enthusiast
Thread Starter
Replaced Rancho XL9000 with Fox-- In 10 minutes I understand why Fox is on top.
Here it is folks. I might be one of the only people to give a negative review to Rancho. But it's time.
I ordered 4 of the XL9000s when they had a buy 3, get one free type deals. I was stoked. 9 adjust-ability settings! Wow! Off with the budget boost extenders, and the XLs went on. The silver/red combo looked a little low-rent, but looks are subjective, and as long as they performed, I would be fine. However, the disappointment came quickly. On the first rock crawling outing, both of the rear adjustment knobs were crushed off. Now, part of it I supposed is my lack of foresight to mount them inwards, but it seemed to make the dials hard to reach. So I mounted them with dials out. Big mistake. The dials are about the cheapest, weakest pieces of plastic you will ever find. Turning the dial inspires no confidence at all- I felt like just adjusting it would strip it or snap it off. Still, with all the rave reviews, I ignored this.
They seemed to do OK for a while, but I see now that's because I didn't know any better. For a long time, driving my 6 speed around was really unpleasant. From a stoplight, the Jeep would lurch and rock forwards and backwards, creating a very annoying ride. It wasn't jarring, just annoying. Braking would also create a similar forward dive, with the same annoyance. But, the ride seemed smooth over bumps so I didn't mind.
Then, I tried some high speed driving this year at King of the Hammers. I was running with some XJs, all of whom had Fox shocks with reservoirs. I kept up, at pretty high speeds, and then when we reached our destination, I got out and felt my shocks. All 4 of them were untouchably hot. My front right shock had failed completely, where I could bounce the Jeep up and down with a single finger. I could see a noticeable sag. Sadly, I knew a blown shock when I saw one. No one else had any such problem, and as guys do, mocked me for my inferior gear.
Fastforward a bit, and I decided to upgrade. These Ranchos simply didn't cut it. I got the same Fox shocks I saw perform so well out there in the desert. Today I installed them. Before I get to how great these new shocks are, I need to spend some time talking about just how bad the Ranchos are. Three of the four shocks turned out to be blown. I pressed them down once removed, and the shafts stayed compressed. Shaking them around made sounds to a soda being shook-- I could hear liquid splashing around inside.
I had to cut the shaft of the front right shock, as for some reason the tower nut jammed and wouldn't undo. But then I discovered another horrendous design flaw-- the right rear shock had been gashed into by the rear track bar mount!!! The design of these ranchos has the body of the shock on the bottom, in harm's way. When the axle articulates, that track bar mount goes straight down into the shock, gashing it.
I tossed all four XL9000s into the trash, wondering how these got such good reviews.
Once I started driving on the new Fox shocks, I thought "Oh! So this is what dampening is!" I thought these shocks were going to be really harsh, based solely on how much pressure it took to compress them. However, the ride is perfect. Gone is the annoying rocking back and forth, gone is the brake dive. The Jeep corners better, and feels all around more planted. Further, the adjustment knobs on these are well designed (ie, metal and mounted out of harm's way). I can't rave enough about these shocks. Well worth the money.
Conversely, I'm utterly disappointed with Rancho. I used to think these were good shocks, but I see now I was simply ignorant as to what a good shock is. The Rancho XL9000s look cheap, have inherent design flaws, and reach their performance threshold far too quickly.
The only bad thing about the Fox shocks are that they didn't come with any stickers. :(
So there you have it. Go with Fox. I have to go ahead and give a mighty stamp of disapproval to XL9000 shocks. Complete waste of money.
My setup: 2013 2 door, 6 speed, 4.56 gears, 35s, 2.5" lift from RK 1.5 triple rate springs, 2" bumpstops all around, stock fenders.
I ordered 4 of the XL9000s when they had a buy 3, get one free type deals. I was stoked. 9 adjust-ability settings! Wow! Off with the budget boost extenders, and the XLs went on. The silver/red combo looked a little low-rent, but looks are subjective, and as long as they performed, I would be fine. However, the disappointment came quickly. On the first rock crawling outing, both of the rear adjustment knobs were crushed off. Now, part of it I supposed is my lack of foresight to mount them inwards, but it seemed to make the dials hard to reach. So I mounted them with dials out. Big mistake. The dials are about the cheapest, weakest pieces of plastic you will ever find. Turning the dial inspires no confidence at all- I felt like just adjusting it would strip it or snap it off. Still, with all the rave reviews, I ignored this.
They seemed to do OK for a while, but I see now that's because I didn't know any better. For a long time, driving my 6 speed around was really unpleasant. From a stoplight, the Jeep would lurch and rock forwards and backwards, creating a very annoying ride. It wasn't jarring, just annoying. Braking would also create a similar forward dive, with the same annoyance. But, the ride seemed smooth over bumps so I didn't mind.
Then, I tried some high speed driving this year at King of the Hammers. I was running with some XJs, all of whom had Fox shocks with reservoirs. I kept up, at pretty high speeds, and then when we reached our destination, I got out and felt my shocks. All 4 of them were untouchably hot. My front right shock had failed completely, where I could bounce the Jeep up and down with a single finger. I could see a noticeable sag. Sadly, I knew a blown shock when I saw one. No one else had any such problem, and as guys do, mocked me for my inferior gear.
Fastforward a bit, and I decided to upgrade. These Ranchos simply didn't cut it. I got the same Fox shocks I saw perform so well out there in the desert. Today I installed them. Before I get to how great these new shocks are, I need to spend some time talking about just how bad the Ranchos are. Three of the four shocks turned out to be blown. I pressed them down once removed, and the shafts stayed compressed. Shaking them around made sounds to a soda being shook-- I could hear liquid splashing around inside.
I had to cut the shaft of the front right shock, as for some reason the tower nut jammed and wouldn't undo. But then I discovered another horrendous design flaw-- the right rear shock had been gashed into by the rear track bar mount!!! The design of these ranchos has the body of the shock on the bottom, in harm's way. When the axle articulates, that track bar mount goes straight down into the shock, gashing it.
I tossed all four XL9000s into the trash, wondering how these got such good reviews.
Once I started driving on the new Fox shocks, I thought "Oh! So this is what dampening is!" I thought these shocks were going to be really harsh, based solely on how much pressure it took to compress them. However, the ride is perfect. Gone is the annoying rocking back and forth, gone is the brake dive. The Jeep corners better, and feels all around more planted. Further, the adjustment knobs on these are well designed (ie, metal and mounted out of harm's way). I can't rave enough about these shocks. Well worth the money.
Conversely, I'm utterly disappointed with Rancho. I used to think these were good shocks, but I see now I was simply ignorant as to what a good shock is. The Rancho XL9000s look cheap, have inherent design flaws, and reach their performance threshold far too quickly.
The only bad thing about the Fox shocks are that they didn't come with any stickers. :(
So there you have it. Go with Fox. I have to go ahead and give a mighty stamp of disapproval to XL9000 shocks. Complete waste of money.
My setup: 2013 2 door, 6 speed, 4.56 gears, 35s, 2.5" lift from RK 1.5 triple rate springs, 2" bumpstops all around, stock fenders.
03-14-2015, 10:16 PM
#2
JK Jedi Master
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So the remote reservoir shocks the other guys were running performed better at high speed desert driving than some blown out non-remote res shocks?
The new $240ish dollar shocks dampen better than the $68 (current price after rebate?) shocks that were blown out from previous use?
The $68 shocks are junk because they were installed the wrong direction and the knobs broke off when dropped onto rocks under full vehicle weight?
Wow, not what I would have expected. You would think that a shock that cost about 3 1/2 times less would have performed just as well as the shiny new remote res Fox's.
The new $240ish dollar shocks dampen better than the $68 (current price after rebate?) shocks that were blown out from previous use?
The $68 shocks are junk because they were installed the wrong direction and the knobs broke off when dropped onto rocks under full vehicle weight?
Wow, not what I would have expected. You would think that a shock that cost about 3 1/2 times less would have performed just as well as the shiny new remote res Fox's.
03-15-2015, 12:38 AM
#3
That being said, some parts fail regardless of skill. My brand new Rancho XL9000s blew out simply because they can't handle high speed offroad. Good heavens they are amazing shocks otherwise. I just pushed them past their designed limits. Now I run reservoir Fox 2.0s, at a much higher cost. Everything I break, I replace with an upgraded part. Just because I play pretend Baja 1000, doesn't mean I can fault the parts.
03-15-2015, 04:48 AM
#4
JK Jedi
I have been complaining about the Rancho 7000's fading way too fast. I had them replaced once under warranty as Rancho said they should not fade so quickly but second set did as well.
03-15-2015, 05:10 AM
#6
JK Junkie
whats funny is that I don't find my el cheapo Monroe reflex shocks fade hardly at all. Weird. I know the fox with resivors will resist even better. But for my style of off roading the Reflex work the bees knees.
03-15-2015, 05:17 AM
#7
JK Super Freak
I think those RS9000's were run in a manner for which they are not designed. High speed running like that requires a shock with a reservoir shock to deal with the heat build-up from working that hard. That's like trying to chop a tree down with a pocket knife, and then complaining about it. Sounds like the Fox shocks are the right tool for the way you like to off-road.
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03-15-2015, 05:55 AM
#8
JK Junkie
I think those RS9000's were run in a manner for which they are not designed. High speed running like that requires a shock with a reservoir shock to deal with the heat build-up from working that hard. That's like trying to chop a tree down with a pocket knife, and then complaining about it. Sounds like the Fox shocks are the right tool for the way you like to off-road.
03-15-2015, 06:29 AM
#9
JK Jedi
03-15-2015, 06:47 AM
#10
JK Freak
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Apples to oranges. The Rancho 9000 are a good entry level off-road shock. The adjustable feature is functional at best, eventually you'll need to upgrade them but you did more than a simple upgrade. I too would love the Fox Resi shocks, but the non Resi Fox's are more my price point and do very well for most people's use.